Saturday, November 18, 2023

KML Players at the 2023 Wisconsin Junior Open

The Wisconsin Junior Open is an opportunity for players to experience competitive chess and learn what they need to work on to improve their games. Eight KML players competed this year. Learning was the most important result, although one KML player had a personal best and finished higher in the Open section standings than any KML player has in our history of attending this event. 

Here are all the results:

Reserve section for those who are unrated or under 900 US Chess rating:

  • There were 66 players in this field and five rounds of play.
  • Three of our players were brand new to competition and gained valuable experience (Natalie, Dylan, Luke)
  • Nathanael Himsel had two wins and three draws and finished 14th overall.
  • Dylan Hanson had two wins and a draw, which is fantastic for a newcomer to competition.
  • Todd Tischer achieved two wins.

Open section, which features the best high school chess players in WI:

  • There were 45 players in this field and five rounds of play.
  • Matt Hilzley had two wins.
  • Carson Reik had three wins and finished 11th overall.
  • Sawyer Yogerst won four of his five games, finishing 7th overall. This is the highest finish ever for a KML player in the Open section at the Junior Open. His rating jumped from 611 to 983. He won the award for best of the Class E rated players, meaning he was the lowest rated player going in who finished the highest overall.
For more information on US Chess ratings or to look up a player's rating, go to https://new.uschess.org/player-search.
Carson Reik: Finished 2nd best of all the players in the Open section in the "D" class
Sawyer Yogerst: Highest finishing Class E player in the Open section
Nathanael Himsel: Finished 2nd best of all the players in the Under 600 rating class in the Reserve section



For more photos, go here.

Saturday, June 17, 2023

2023 KML Chess Camp

Thanks to all of our high school helpers who made the 2023 KML Chess Camp a great experience for 28 campers. Our high school players are dedicated to raising up the next generation of chess players!



Saturday, April 8, 2023

2022-23 End of Season Awards

Depth and determination propelled the KML Chess team to a successful season. The following players earned awards this year:

VARSITY LETTER WINNERS:

Carson Reik, Casey Heder, Christian Klemann, Ethan Rodell, Grant Kruse, Matt Hilzley, Nathanael Himsel, Sawyer Yogerst, Todd Tischer, Zak Schulz, Nate Guevin


JV LETTER WINNERS: 

Ethan Eernisse, Joey Pedersen


MILWAUKEE CHESS LEAGUE:

About 220 players participated in the Milwaukee chess league between October and March, with virtual meets on Thursdays and three live meets. KML player Carson Reik was the top-scoring player in the league, followed by KML's Sawyer Yogerst #2, and Nathanael Himsel #7. 

In the league's end-of-season tournament, KML's first team earned 3rd place in Division 1 and KML's second team earned 2nd place in Division 2.

  • Division 1 Team: Carson Reik, Sawyer Yogerst, Nathanael, Himsel, Nate Guevin, Ethan Rodell
  • Division 2 Team: Matt Hilzley, Zak Schulz, Grant Kruse, Casey Heder, Christian Klemann


SPECIAL AWARDS:

Rook-ie of the Year: Ethan Rodell

Diligence Award: Nathanael Himsel

Wirkkhorse Award: Sawyer Yogerst

MVP: Carson Reik

Senior Leadership: Nathan Guevin and Zak Schulz


KML Chess Celebrates 2023 Division 2 State Championship

The KML Chess attended the Wisconsin State Chess Championships in March at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh and earned the title of Division 2 State Champs.

There were 30 varsity teams entered in the 2023 state tournament. Teams are divided into three equal divisions based on US Chess Federation ratings. KML's top varsity team went into the tournament seeded 6th in Division 2 and 16th overall. They finished at the top of Division 2 and 8th overall.

Members of the championship team were Board 1: Carson Reik, Board 2: Sawyer Yogerst, Board 3: Zak Schulz, Board 4: Nate Guevin, and Board 5: Ethan Rodell.

Nate Guevin also earned honors as the individual Board 4 State Champion for Division 2, winning 4 of his 5 games.

Five other KML players competed in Varsity Division 3 and two in Junior Varsity, gaining valuable experience for future years. 

The KML Chess Team's motto is "We serve our King," always remembering where the glory and gratitude goes for all of our victories.

KML Chess State Finishes through the years:

2023
Varsity A 1st place Division 2 State Champion
Nate Guevin Division 2 Board 4 State Champ
Varsity B 8th place Division 3

2022
Varsity A 3rd Place Division 2
Varsity B 4th Place Division 3
Matt Hilzley Division 3 Board 1 State Champ

2021 
Virtual

2020 
Cancelled

2019
Varsity 8th Place Division 2
JV 9th Place

2018
Varsity A 5th Place Division 2
Varsity B 7th Place Division 3

2017
Varsity A 14th Place in Division 1
Varsity B 6th Place Division 3
Joe Polheber Division 3 Board 3 State Champ

2016
Varsity 12th Place in Division 1
JV 10th Place